UT-USC Postgame Notes

Nov. 7, 2015

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UT-USCPostgameNotes 

POSTGAME NOTES

Tennessee Tidbits

Attendance at today’s game was 101,253.
With that assemblage, it marks the first time since 2007 that Tennessee has had five crowds of more than 100,000 in a single season.
Saturday was sophomore tight end Ethan Wolf’s birthday.
This was the 34th meeting between the Vols and Gamecocks, with Tennessee now holding a 25-7-2 advantage.
The Vols are 16-2 vs. USC in Knoxville.
This marks Tennessee’s first game on Nov. 7 since 2009. The Vols are 15-3 on this date, winning their last 14 contests held on the seventh of November.
Butch Jones’ record when leading at the half improved to 56-5.

Special Recognitions

Vol All-American, Kansas City Chiefs All-Pro defensive back and cancer survivor Eric Berry (UT letterman 2007-09) was honored prior to the contest as the #VFL Legend of the Game.
The 1995 and 2005 Vols College Baseball World Series teams were introduced at the end of the first quarter.
VFL Luke Hochevar, who won the clinching game five of the 2015 World Series for the Kansas City Royals vs. the New York Mets, was on hand and was recognized on the field with his family during the second quarter.

Vol Captains

Tennessee captains were redshirt sophomore Kendal Vickers, senior Brian Randolph and junior Joshua Dobbs.
South Carolina won the coin toss and deferred until the second half.

Too Close To Call, Again

Tennessee and South Carolina have combined to provide some dramatic finishes in recent years.
The last three meetings between these schools have been decided by a total of eight points.
Tennessee kicked last-minute game-winning field goals in 2013 and 2014, Medley hit the clincher with 9:14 remaining tonight, and Malik Foreman’s hit forced a fumble by Jerell Adams that was recovered by Jalen Reeves-Maybin at the Tennessee 13. That recovery, with 32 seconds remaining, made a 27-24 UT lead stand up for victory number five this season.
Six of the last 11 games between these schools have been decided by three or fewer points.
In the last 13 UT-SC meetings (since 2002), the game has been within a touchdown in the fourth quarter 10 times and has gone to overtime on three occasions.

The Dobbs Effect

Joshua Dobbs connected on 11-of-17 passes for 123 yards and a touchdown in the first half with an interception coming on the final “Hail Mary” pass of the opening 30 minutes.
The junior finished 20-of-34 for 255 yards on the evening with two TDs and an interception.
Dobbs’ passing effort was his fourth of 250 or more yards in his career and second this season. The other games were vs. South Carolina (301 in 2014), Kentucky (297 in 2014) and Georgia (312 in 2015).
The Vol signal-caller has connected on 43-of-74 for 556 yards with four TDs and two interceptions in two career games vs. the Gamecocks.
Dobbs also rushed 13 times for 35 yards.

Offensive Highlights

Alvin Kamara produced 47 of UT’s 67 yards on the game-opening scoring drive, rushing twice for 27 and catching a pass for 20 yards. He scored from four yards out with 11:57 left in the first quarter.
Tennessee tallied a touchdown on its opening possession of a game for the fourth time this season. The other games were Bowling Green, Western Carolina and Arkansas.
Kamara also caught an 11-yard TD toss from Joshua Dobbs in the third quarter to put Tennessee up 24-17 after USC had tied it at 17-all on its previous possession.
The redshirt sophomore finished the game with three catches for 27 yards and a TD and four rushes for 30 yards and a score, marking the fourth time he has scored two touchdowns in a game this season.
Von Pearson hit paydirt on Tennessee’s second touchdown, grabbing a 37-yard strike down the middle of the field from Joshua Dobbs. It was Pearson’s first TD reception of the season after catching five a year ago.
Pearson had four receptions for 58 yards in the opening half and finished the game with a career highs in yards (121) and receptions (eight).
The 121 receiving yards by Pearson were the most yards since Justin Hunter (141) and Mychal Rivera (129) vs. Mizzou in 2012 and the eight receptions were the most since Pig Howard had eight vs. Mizzou in 2014.
Jalen Hurd had 62 yards on 10 carries in the first quarter and totaled 79 yards on 14 carries to end the first half. He finished with 90 yards on 23 carries.
Birthday boy Ethan Wolf pulled down a 23-yard reception from Joshua Dobbs, giving him at least one catch in every game this season.
The Vols caused a game-clinching fumble, marking the 23rd time in their last 27 games they’ve forced a turnover.

First Quarter Dominance

Two games in a row, Tennessee has dominated the opening quarter.
The Vols outgained South Carolina in total offense in the first period, 177-28.
South Carolina had -2 yards passing today in the opening stanza.
Last Saturday night vs. Kentucky, UT had a 144-2 edge after the opening 15 minutes.

Defensively Speaking

Malik Foreman forced a fumble by USC’s Jerell Adams and Jalen Reeves-Maybin recovered with 32 seconds remaining, preserving a 27-24 victory for the Vols.
With defensive back Emmanuel Moseley already out for the first half because of a targeting penalty at Kentucky last Saturday night, free safety Brian Randolph was flagged for targeting vs. South Carolina and ejected with 5:57 remaining in the first quarter.
Tennessee’s defense stifled USC in the first half, holding the Gamecocks to 3-for-8 on third down attempts and 0-for-1 on fourth down tries. South Carolina finished the game 6-of-17 on third down and 1-of-2 on fourth down.
Sophomore Derek Barnett picked up his sixth sack of the season and the 16th of his career, taking down USC quarterback Perry Orth for an eight-yard loss in the first period.
Barnett and Darrin Kirkland Jr. tied for the team lead in tackles in the first half with five each.
Kirkland Jr. finished with a career-high nine stops, including five solos, and he added a quarterback hurry.
Reeves-Maybin wound up with nine tackles, including eight solos, and added a half-sack, quarterback hurry and forced fumble.
Tennessee ended the first quarter with a 14-0 lead, marking only the second time all season South Carolina had failed to score in the opening 15 minutes.
The Vols didn’t allow the Gamecocks to get on the scoreboard until the 1:03 mark of the second quarter, surrendering a 43-yard field goal.
South Carolina’s halftime total of three points was its lowest of the season. The previous low was six vs. Vanderbilt.

Special Teams

Evan Berry, the NCAA leader in kickoff return yardage and TDs, opened the game with a 33-yard kick return and finished with two returns for 49 yards and an average of 25.0 per return.
Aaron Medley kicked 3-of-3 PATs, improving to 40-of-40 this season and 82-of-83 for his career.
Medley drilled a 44-yard field goal to put UT up, 17-0 in the second quarter. He added a 27-yarder in the fourth quarter to break a tie and lift UT to a 27-24 lead with 9:14 remaining. UT’s defense made that advantage stand, giving Medley his second-straight game-winning field goal vs. South Carolina. He hit one in overtime last season to provide the difference in the overtime thriller in Columbia.
In 2013, Michael Palardy hit a game-winner in Neyland Stadium to defeat the Gamecocks.
Punter Trevor Daniel boomed his 15th punt inside the 20 and ninth inside the 10 this season.
Daniel unleashed a punt of 58 yards and another for 50, marking the 16th and 17th kicks of 50+ yards this season.
Cameron Sutton came up with a 26-yard punt return that set Tennessee up at its own 49 with 7:44 remaining in the game. The Vols, however, were unable to take advantage.

Upon Further Review

Officials ruled on the field that Alvin Kamara was down before fumbling in the third quarter. The replay, however, overturned that call and gave the ball to South Carolina at the Tennessee 13 yard-line. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty assessed against UT on the play (half the distance to the goal) gave USC the ball at the seven.
Officials reviewed a possible fumble by South Carolina in the fourth quarter. The replay revealed the player’s forward progress had been stopped, the play had been blown dead, so no fumble and the ruling on the field being upheld.

University of Tennessee Athletics

POSTGAME NOTES

Tennessee Tidbits

Special Recognitions

Vol Captains

Too Close To Call, Again

The Dobbs Effect

Offensive Highlights

First Quarter Dominance

Defensively Speaking

Special Teams

Upon Further Review

Players Mentioned

Malik Foreman

Ethan Wolf

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